The guy doesn’t step up to the plate
He doesn’t initiate serious discussions, and he doesn’t take his masculine role. He doesn’t commit and he isn't willing to close the doors on his other ‘girls’. He’s scared to commit to a serious relationship because he’s never had one and doesn’t know what to do or what to expect.
The girl doesn’t step up to the plate
She doesn’t say what she wants, and she just goes with the flow. She’s scared that if she brings up the idea of committing into a relationship that it’ll scare him off, or he will say he’d rather just be friends.
You compare every person you meet to your first love
For some reason we seem to forget why it never worked out with that first guy or girl. Every other person who follows the ‘love of your life’ is inadequate and doesn’t meet the mark, so we never commit to the new guy/girl, because we are still in love with the idea of the old one.
The flirtationship fades away
You get stuck in a flirtationship rut, and never progress into a relationship. The flirtationship is too much fun, but eventually it runs its course and comes to an end. See ya later potential relationship, see ya later flirtationship. Hello single world.
They live in another city
Chances are two people would have to like each other a decent amount, and be willing to go against the odds, to begin a relationship while living in different cities. Not every body is up for that type of challenge, so consequently, the relationship never begins.
You know your family and friends wouldn’t approve
If you value the opinions of your family and friends you probably won’t date a guy purely because deep down you knows that it is a bad idea and that you shouldn’t even be considering him in the first place. This is not always the case, but it always plays in the back of your mind when you're considering dating a guy/girl.
You’re scared
If it looks like the relationship is going to be serious, and the girl isn't as serious about the relationship as the guy is (or vice versa), or doesn’t feel ready for such a commitment, this can scare a person off, and consequently the almost-relationship remains just that.
It was a virtual almost-relationship
Some almost-relationships (particularly with high-schoolers) primarily develop through virtual dialogue, without the fun of seeing the other person’s facial reactions, hearing the tone of their voice, or the sound of them laugh. People spend more time communicating via Facebook or text than they do verbally communicating in real life. Next thing you know they hang out with the person they're interested in and they have nothing to talk about, and consequently, conversation is awkward.
Being single with your single friends is fun
It’s great when you and your girls/guys get to all hang out without the complications of boyfriends/girlfriends. Sometimes single girls/guys just like to play around with the idea of getting into a relationship, but it never happens because they're having too much fun being free as a bird. They like the idea of a relationship, but when it becomes an almost-reality, they’d rather stay single to mingle.
There are so many options
Sometimes we think that Mr/Mrs Right is going to be perfect, which of course, is never the case. We (maybe more so girls) spend so long searching for ‘the one’ that we never see the best option that could be sitting right in front of us the whole time. As a result we never 100% commit to any guy/girl in case a better one comes along (FOMO (fear of missing out) at it’s finest…or worst).
He/she doesn’t connect with you on a deep level
You can’t talk about serious topics with them, and everything is all fun and games. Sure, a person who knows how to have fun is attractive, but you have to be able to talk about real, raw and personal issues too. Opening up to each other is all part of what makes a relationship more intimate.
You don't know what you want
You have a ‘thing’ with someone without the intention of it turning into a relationship. One thing leads to another, and what do ya know, you're pretty much in an almost-relationship with this person. But because you never intentionally pursued this person with the idea of forming a relationship, you're not sure if you actually want to make it official or not; you're not even sure if you want to be in a relationship at all. Note to self (and others): just because you have feelings for someone it doesn’t mean you have to date them.
It was all in your head
This is the worst kind of almost-relationship, and I would say it mainly happens with girls who over-analyse, over-imagine and over-think the idea of them and another guy. Girls, stop thinking and start acting, if you think a guy might make a good boyfriend go and find out! Don't just make it all up inside your head; for a guy to be in a relationship, he has to know about it!